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Saturday, May 29, 2010

Wanted to say I now have 700+ followers and wanted to thank new and older followers!I appreciate the continued support. Will do a few giveaways in the upcoming weeks. :)

With my Eyeko Polishes - I was also given the opportunity to try out their Graffiti Eyeliner Pen.

Honestly, I rarely ever use colored liquid liner and wish I was given black to really try out more often but I figured I can spiff up a makeup look and use the purple liner so with that being said...

I have tried ELF, MAC and I believe Revlon or L'Oreal use to own one - but their eyeliner pens. I currently use ELF for the price but it's not my favorite pen. The Eyeko pen has the consistency and feel like the ELF pen yet it has better staying power. I had to use a bit of liquid makeup remover to get it off because even soap and water didn't do the trick. Which is a big plus is terms of smudging. The tip of the pen is a bit flimsy/soft which is my gripe on most pens actually. I like a bit of stiffness but when used sideways, it prevents the foam brush from flaring and I like to keep the tip pointy for the wing.

It didn't rub off when layering like gel liner usually does, easy to apply and probably the easiest method on making a winged liner (with practice of course). It's reasonably priced compared to MAC, pricier then ELF. Personally if they had this at US Stores - I would pick up an Eyeko Pen over an ELF.

I use the ELF for travel or for my kit because if I loose it I won't feel bad because of it's cheapness.I'd recommend.

Anyone tried the Eyeko Graffiti pens - or have a different preference?

Celly

DISCLAIMER: Said product was given by said company to be reviewed on Makeup By Celly. Product was used by me and all shared opinions are honest and not influence because of gratis. Products should be used at your own discretion.

e.l.f.'s customer base is reaching the 2 million mark and e.l.f. is ready to celebrate. The lucky customer who happens to be the 2 millionth customer will receive a $3500 prize package consisting of: an Ipad, 2 nights in a NYC Affinia hotel, 2 round-trip airline tickets to NY, a tour of the e.l.f. offices, and makeup for a year.

So all you folks have to do is click the button below:(If you have Adblocker - temporarily disable to see the code boxes)

If you want reviews on products click here [ELF Reviews]. If you had inkling to purchase ELF and doing a haul, I would do it now because who knows if you're the 2 million customer. I want a damn trip to NYC lol.

Anyway I found a really good code on ELF Studio Line and I'm kinda pissed I found it late because it has all the things I recently reviewed on. A gel liner, shadow brush, bag, blush/bronzer, eyeshadow...all retailed at $23 and you get it free with a $20 purchase. Shipping is around $6.00. But that deal is really awesome. And if you spend $30 you get a free magazine subscription to OK magazine automatically. I got my first issue last week. Ugh, I love ELF. lol.

Click the button to automatically get your code.

I'll be keeping these buttons up at the side panel under AFFILIATES for a while.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

I was kindly contacted by an Eyeko rep. to test out and review some their new nail polishes.I've been wanted to try this brand out ever since so many Bloggers made post on them.

Posh PolishI was hesitant on trying this but I'm glad I did my weekly mani with it. It's a really gorgeous shade, my pictures don't do it justice. And it works well against my skintone. I'm glad this was easy to work with in terms of layering coats and application.

Coral Polish + Petite PolishI decided to play around with Coral and do a french with a twist. I used Eyeko Petite Polish as base and Nailene were kind enough to send me nail strips for creating french nails, used that - then added white polkadots. I like that this shade of Coral wasn't so bright and true to color. It's a pretty shade, to me it's nothing special because I own so many Coral shades but it is a good product none the less. Petite Polish is nothing special, I've used better Polishes dedicated to french nails. It didn't give a hint of pink to create a natural looking bed but then again I didn't layer the coat.

Shade: Coral (Red-Orange)Coat: 1 (for tips)

My only gripe with this product is the packaging itself. I'm not into the childish, Manga images. It looks cheap - obviously the product itself does not reflect the package but it's one of the reasons why I never bought from Eyeko... you wouldn't imagine a product that looks geared toward children will be any good. I kinda prefer their other packaging, aside from the labeling - the bottle itself gave a bit of vintage feel while these are nothing special.

Anyone have their favorite Eyeko Polish shade?

Celly

DISCLAIMER: Said product was given by said company to be reviewed on Makeup By Celly. Product was used by me and all shared opinions are honest and not influence because of gratis. Products should be used at your own discretion.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Thought I'd try out posting my outfits - I'm nothing of a fashion maven but I figured it wouldn't hurt to post. I get inspired by other plus size ladies and their fashions. I love that they embrace their figure and wear the latest fashions just as nicely as anyone else...

I'm a casual dresser. A simple shirt, jeans and flats - messy hair in the air then out that door.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

In some post back I mentioned how I want to start wearing heels so I make a conscious effort to buy shoes with small heels or wedges to wear over Summer. Eventually upgrade to some "fuck me pumps" haha. 6-inchers here I come!

I went to Payless and found these wedges on sale for $19.99 from $24.99.I only saw 3 color choices at the store - white, black and yellow. I wanted them all!

These are so comfy and affordable.Don't hate on Payless if you're a shoe snob, they do carry brand names here and there and have cute selections. I prefer the American Eagle and Lela Rose - they have the better looking stuff by far.

Next thing is to find some Christian Louboutin shoes like these: Poseidon. My friend bought them and while they're gorgeous, I personally do not have $1,200 to spend - so if anyone can find something similar but WAY cheaper, let me know! LOL.

Monday, May 17, 2010

I rarely wear "heavy" makeup now... if anything, for clubbing days only but that's rare too lol.

But I did want to try blue again - I saw some YT video and chick looked gorgeous and it didn't look so "heavy" but when I did it, I just couldn't really pull it off. Lost my mojo a bit lol. PLUS ALLERGIES! I can't wear makeup because my allergies act up so badly! Hate it... tearing up, smearing makeup all the time. LIFE... give me a break lol!

Friday, May 14, 2010

I own majority of the ELF brushes - I believe I did an old post on them if you search my blog.I love them all! I really want to complete the full collection and get more. I bought many doubles and gave them to my mom and sister. For $1-3 it's really one of the most affordable and best brush line out there.

Blushing, Bronzing and Blending BrushThis is a great blush brush because of it's slant - it works into the hollow of the cheeks![click to shop]

Defining Eye BrushI used this on a client already and it worked really well for the crease and blending. I'm loving it already. Fortunately I bought backups. Totally recommend.[click to shop]

Foundation BrushHave yet to use but the bristles are nice and soft - not so stiff. Curious to see how well it'll apply.[click to shop]

Makeup Artist Brush BeltMy little pride and glory. Been wanting this FOREVER! I finally bought it and I'm so happy I did.I love it! I put a few of my brushes to give an idea on how it looks. Has 3 rows for the brushes and two deep pockets for items. The feel is of semi-stiff pleather but it feels like it'll get softer with more usage but I don't mind. Has an adjustable belt. I already got compliments off of it. For $15 this is a steal and a must by! Totally makes your job easier on clients.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Candid Coral BlushI bought this one in Target - I believe there were 4 studio blush shades total in the store. Anyways, this swatched more pink then coral on me. The gold shimmer makes it nice. I don't have it but to me it looks like a dupe to NARS Orgasm. I could be wrong so correct me on this. I really wanna try Peachy Keen though. I'd recommend..

Golden BronzerThis reminds me of my old Jane bronzer - even when swatched and mixed together. Is it anything special? In my opinion - no. But in terms of drugstore brand, this is the cheaper and nicest looking bronzer I've come acrossed. When mixed together it kinda looks dirty on me so I'd recommend Golden Bronzer to fair/olive skinned folks. Cool Bronzer would probably be more suitable for me. The white in this combo makes a pretty highlight color. The pink makes a nice blush color too. I wouldn't recommend this shade for deep/dark skintones but would for others.

Healthy Glow Bronzing - SunkissedOkay - so I totally didn't like this, too much fall out and looked chalky. For $1 it wasn't a total lost. It swatched pretty though. I like the shade but I MUCH MUCH MUCH prefer my Flirt! bronzer over this. Too bad because it looked pretty when applied with my fingers, I might just try that and not give up but for now I wouldn't recommend.

Blushed/BronzedOkay, I LOVE this combo color. Probably the best one in the studio blush line. If I had to purchase one thing I'd get this because the blush color is universal. Similar to Candid Coral and the bronzer is a really nice contouring shade that would work best on tan/deep skintone. They glide on nicely and have good pigmentation. Would recommend.

Monday, May 10, 2010

I did a huge ELF haul in the past 2 weeks. One by visiting Target and an online buy.I really have no complaints on majority of the thing that I bought. I want to give it a good review so this post will be broken up into three. Face, Eyes & Brushes - starting with EYES. Majority of the products are bought for my kit but I bought a lot of backups for my personal collection because I really liked them (backups not pictured).

I was really happily surprised that ELF has their own shelf at Target instead of a row of miscellaneous items (I hadn't shop there in a few months). Half the side had the $1 regular line and the other half had the $3 studio line. Many of my purchases were made there. Only thing I bought online that wasn't carried at the store was the brush belt, cream e/l, few brushes and beauty encyclopedia BUT I have spotted the beauty encyclopedia at Target and Walmart occasionally.

Cream EyelinerI placed a side by side comparison with MAC Fluidline and ELF Cream Eyeliner both in black.Comes in 3 other shades. All about it is similar to MAC in terms of color, staying power, amount of product but for a much cheaper price at $3. Only thing is the consistency is a bit weird and hard to describe - it's creamy and there was no trouble on applying it but it felt "light" compared to MAC. Like cheap consistency I guess, but it did it's job. The packaging is about the same size but it's made from plastic so I'm curious how long it'll last without getting dry. Overall I would recommend it. Can't wait to try the others.

Single Eye ShadowsRaspberry Truffle (excuse the misprint on the image) - a burgundy shade. Very pretty color and it easily can manipulate to a deep red or brown shade depending on what you combine it with. I love it. Don't think I own anything similar to it apart from MAC Paintpot in Artifact or a deeper Cranberry e/s.

Amethyst- a deep purple shade. Similar to MAC Nocturnal or Fig. 1. Simple, basic purple. I dunno if there is anything unique about this shade but I bought it to try it out.

The eyeshadows have good pigmentation and easy application. The look of it is really sleek, comes with a compact mirror and like most know it's similar looking to NARS packaging. For $3 each - it's a bargain. There are 10 shades within this line. I'd recommend.

The Beauty EncyclopediaEveryday Eye Edition - comes with 12 eyeshadows, 2 cream eyeshadows, an eyeliner and brush. Overall the shadows were surprisingly good - it reminds me of Prestige eyeshadow palettes in terms of consistency. Some were softer then others like the gray-green shade (2nd row down - 2 across) but the most pigmented ones were softer. Unfortunately if you have a heavy hand, it'll crumble a bit. One had no pigmentation whatsoever which was on the last row, first on the far left. Crap! I had no problems with the rest.

The cream eye shadows were a waste of space. I wouldn't use them at all - I didn't try their staying power but I could just tell it'll cream because it didn't swatch on dry and it was also sheer. So I'd only use it for highlighting on the cheeks if anything - it works nicely for that.

For $5 I'd recommend. They have another palette called Sparkle Eyes Edition. The sizes of each shadow is the same size as a MAC pan. Great for traveling! I'd totally buy the sets for travel purposes and I'm thinking of purchasing the other one too.

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

As most know, I'm a freelance makeup artist. Not a free makeup artist.

I haven't put forth much efforts to expand my business because I wanted to get other things settled with before I hustle - especially around times like this when it's prom and wedding season! But for now I'm not putting myself out there, anything I get is word of mouth but I'm not actively pursuing any makeup jobs.

I'm slowly buying things for my kit here and there with whatever leftover money I have - it's not cheap, and when I do find cheap things I make sure it's things I'll use on my own face, but in the end - it's my own money being spent regardless of how little or how much I spend on it. I have a lot of things set in my kit apart from buying foundation and concealer, but I digress.

So I tend to do friend's makeup for free ONLY as a birthday gift or how I see fit. The friends I do makeup for free are ones who tend to do a lot of things for me, are generous in terms of paying for me when I go out or whatever so with them I feel bad for charging and I don't feel right. It's very few of them anyways, so to me it doesn't feel like any waste of time or loss if I do the favor. Or it's free if I ask them to help me practice on them and take some photos. Only exceptions and I had to mention this because I know some makeup artist that will absolutely charge no matter who or what. I will not and that's a personal choice. I see no right in wrong in this but in other things I do as I'll mention later.

Anyways, while I do this for some friends - I refuse to do it for all. Just because I am your friend and I know how to do your makeup does not mean I will do it for free or at a cheap price. My pricing is low in general because I don't have all necessary things for a complete look (foundation/concealer) and also because I rarely do it right now so I'm not in demand and I'm completely start-up. I start at a reasonable $20 for eyes/face basics and $25 with lashes. I charge more with distance/wedding. While MAC charges $50 and that goes towards buying their products - so I see my pricing reasonable. As I grow, I will definitely charge more - don't get me wrong, but as for now I'm keeping it low.

What kills me is that people who are freelancing are selling themselves for cheaper. HELLA CHEAP!I lost jobs to girls who were charging $10 for eyes and even $5 per person. FIVE FUCKING DOLLARS! I mean, I love a good deal and all but you know how much this hurts someone who is actually trying to make a living and profession out of this? Some aren't even freelancing or a professional, some girls are good at doing makeup and decide to do it on whoever that ask and for $5 or even free. Killing me.

I close friend was even doing looks for free at times and I would get so mad at her. It was her own MAC collection she would use, her time and stuff and she'd do it for free. She's just too nice and I kept telling her, "if you do these favors so often - people are gunna take advantage of you and you gotta get compensated, regardless." And it still happens, she's no push over so a lot of girls go to her because she either won't charge or will do it cheaply. And no - a "free" meal does not compensate it. Might as well just pay me or I'll order hella shit.

I got a few offers so far for prom, one being a good friend of mine and I've done her makeup before for free in return she'd get all her cousins to pay when I do their makeup. Well, all those hoochies went to some lady for the fan-fucking-tasticdeal of five dollars so last minute I was out of a good job because competition had a better price. This same friend just text me asking if I can do her sister because the person she knew would be busy. No problem - just pay up.I got a response of:

"Whaaaat?! that's too much... just for eyes?". Sorry, can't lower it - same price I'm charging another girl."I can do her foundations and no lashes!"Yeah, still the same price."I'll get back to you later."

I was going to ask her how much she thought for kicks but honestly I was so mad I didn't even bother. I have a feeling she's going to ask our other friend - knowing her ass will do it for free.

If applying makeup was so easy and cheap - don't you think everyone will be able to do it flawlessly? Whatever "skills" I have took time to study, time to master and money to get there. Don't care if you're my friend or cousin or boss... PAY ME! And most times you are paying for quality. While I question some "freelancers" work out there - majority are really good at their job and we do it because we love and I like making someone feel really pretty. Scouts honor, one of the best feelings. But if your trade/skill were house painting - would you do it for free? HELL NAH. Nope, sweating and shit painting walls for free. Pfft. Think about it...

Don't sell yourself for so cheap because you're ruining things for makeup artist in general out there, make a profit - either way, whatever money you make...some of it goes back to replenishing or building your kit. Be choosy of who you do favors for. If they really were your friends they'd be supportive of it and know what your time is worth. And like I said - I will order hella shit to eat to compensate for that makeover. I ain't playin'.Celly

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Revlon LE 2008 Collection.I bought this late last year in Big Lots out of all places!

I think the price I got it for was $3 or so? I know some folks had luck finding it in Dollar Tree but my local DT only carries LA girl stuff. Big Lots tend to have Revlon more and more likely older collections.

Heads in the Clouds has the softer shades.The packaging is good, especially for traveling and the brush it comes with is usable and not itchy like most drugstore brand are. These are sheer shadows - I have yet to try them wet though. I'll probably edit and update this post later with foiled swatches.

The lilac is really pretty and reminds me of MAC's Digit or Parfait Amour.The beige color has a hint of yellow. I tend to use it on the lid as a wash.The turquoise color is pretty as well and MAC's Aquadisiac is a good dupe.The last shade is a white shade - it's a good highlight color and the sheerness of the pigments work well for that!

I quite like it but to be honest, I don't reach out to it often. It's a great edition for makeup starters though or for traveling and don't want to wear heavy makeup!

Anyone own the Revlon's Soft On The Eyes collection - what's your like/dislike?

Sunday, May 02, 2010

Probably one of my favorite LE lipstick collection!Unfortunately at the time, so many of the collection was quickly sold out but I did manage to pick up You Say Tomato.

The color is a bright red-orange. Where red is wearable for me, orange makes me look pale - this has a good mixture of both. The orange makes it more fluorescent but the red tones it down. Warmer skin tones would probably have better luck then those fairer but a light hand would solve that problem!

Let me tell you, it was hard to capture the lipstick color. It gave a weird neon-glow in my camera.

The texture is nice. Swipes on smoothly, highly pigmented but dries off slightly matte. But it doesn't give that "tight" feeling that matte lipsticks tend to give which is awesome!

In my own collection - the closes dupe I had was NYX Chaos but it's not a dupe. I heard MAC's Lady Danger is a close dupe.

Anyone have their favorite MAC Mattene lipstick?

Celly

P.S. I didn't add many people to the weight loss because blogger deleted half the comments. Boo. I'm considering making it public though. And apologies for lack of post - I have a month left of work and I'm on stress mode! I have a few post on schedule in the meantime...